The place to ask China-related questions!
Beijing Shanghai Guangzhou Shenzhen Chengdu Xi'an Hangzhou Qingdao Dalian Suzhou Nanjing More Cities>>

Categories

Close
Welcome to eChinacities Answers! Please or register if you wish to join conversations or ask questions relating to life in China. For help, click here.
X

Verify email

Your verification code has been sent to:

Didn`t receive your code? Resend code

By continuing you agree to eChinacities's Privacy Policy .

Sign up with Google Sign up with Facebook
Sign up with Email Already have an account? .
Posts: 2231

Shifu

0
3
You must be a registered user to vote!
You must be a registered user to vote!
3

Q: Basic Human Decency --- What % of Mainlanders has it?

I think most, worldwide, would agree that there is something called basic human decency.

 

[Update: I am also interested in hearing your views on what constitutes basic human decency] 

 

From your china experience, what is your impression of the percentage of PRC Mainlanders (as oppose to ethnic Chinese worldwide) who meet these criteria?

 

A.  less than 1%

B.  less than 5%

C.  less than 10%

D.  more than 10% (please feel free to specify your estimate)

 

“Civilized people must, I believe, satisfy the following criteria:  

 

1) They respect human beings as individuals and are therefore always tolerant, gentle, courteous and amenable ... They do not create scenes over a hammer or a mislaid eraser; they do not make you feel they are conferring a great benefit on you when they live with you, and they don't make a scandal when they leave. (...)

 

2) They have compassion for other people besides beggars and cats. Their hearts suffer the pain of what is hidden to the naked eye. (...)  

 

3) They respect other people's property, and therefore pay their debts.  

 

4) They are not devious, and they fear lies as they fear fire. They don't tell lies even in the most trivial matters. To lie to someone is to insult them, and the liar is diminished in the eyes of the person he lies to. Civilized people don't put on airs; they behave in the street as they would at home, they don't show off to impress their juniors. (...) 

 

5) They don't run themselves down in order to provoke the sympathy of others. They don't play on other people's heartstrings to be sighed over and cosseted ... that sort of thing is just cheap striving for effects, it's vulgar, old hat and false. (...) 

 

 

6) They are not vain. They don't waste time with the fake jewellery of hobnobbing with celebrities, being permitted to shake the hand of a drunken [judicial orator], the exaggerated bonhomie of the first person they meet at the Salon, being the life and soul of the bar ... They regard prases like 'I am a representative of the Press!!' -- the sort of thing one only hears from [very minor journalists] -- as absurd. If they have done a brass farthing's work they don't pass it off as if it were 100 roubles' by swanking about with their portfolios, and they don't boast of being able to gain admission to places other people aren't allowed in (...) True talent always sits in the shade, mingles with the crowd, avoids the limelight ... As Krylov said, the empty barrel makes more noise than the full one. (...)   

 

7) If they do possess talent, they value it ... They take pride in it ... they know they have a responsibility to exert a civilizing influence on [others] rather than aimlessly hanging out with them. And they are fastidious in their habits. (...)  

 

8) They work at developing their aesthetic sensibility ... Civilized people don't simply obey their baser instincts ... they require mens sana in corpore sano. 

 

And so on. That's what civilized people are like ... Reading Pickwick and learning a speech from Faust by heart is not enough if your aim is to become a truly civilized person and not to sink below the level of your surroundings.  

 

[From a letter to Nikolay Chekhov, March 1886]” 

 

― Anton Chekhov, A Life in Letters

 

 

8 years 36 weeks ago in  General  - China

 
Highest Voted
Posts: 2855

Emperor

8
8
You must be a registered user to vote!
You must be a registered user to vote!
0

Using those standards...  I think that there is a GLOBAL rate of A.

Humans, as a species, are TERRIBLE.

earthizen:

Mannnnnn, you nailed it. Too fast, LOL. 

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse
Report Abuse
8 years 36 weeks ago
 
Answers (6)
Comments (22)
Posts: 400

Governor

0
3
You must be a registered user to vote!
You must be a registered user to vote!
3

This question is racist, you are of course left criticise certain aspects of Chinese culture, but only the parts we say and only when we say its ok to do so. Harmonise this politically incorrect piece of trash!

 

Thats what i would say if i didnt have two brain cells to rub together and considered peoples feelings ahead of debate.

earthizen:

Anyone can  choose (D) and say 100% Mainlanders met the criteria, based upon his/her experience.

 

Substantiate your groundless, meaningless, brainless accusation. Also, this is a survey of people's china experience, not a debate. You obviously can't tell the difference. I am not responsible for teaching you that, ask someone else.

 

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse

fada:

I'm sorry, but once racist has been called there are no take backs or explanations. Exactly like shenanigans actually. ECC is not a place for debate, it's a place for saying how great China is.

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse

earthizen:

I specifically said PRC Mainlanders, and pointed out "as oppose to ethnic Chinese worldwide" in the OP. Don't you know mainlanders is only a subset of the Chinese race? Don't you know there are Chinese in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, ....USA? I even wrote Mainlander in the title question.

 

Your ignorance is not an excuse for your meaningless accusation.

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse

fada:

Sorry man, I personally thought my answers were dripping with sarcasm, clearly not. I'm not insulting you.

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse

earthizen:

Rest assure there was no sarcasm. If I was sarcastic I would have called you a genius or something along that line. Everything I said was straight forward, to the point.

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse

fada:

Your not even reading my posts are you?

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse

earthizen:

I was telling you I wasn't being sarcastic, even when you were.

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse
Report Abuse
8 years 36 weeks ago
 
Posts: 7178

Emperor

2
2
You must be a registered user to vote!
You must be a registered user to vote!
0

Human decency?  Depends if you are basing it on actions of individuals, or on society as a whole.

 

The number 1 of your criteria...Quote: "They respect human beings as individuals and are therefore always tolerant, gentle, courteous and amenable ... They do not create scenes over a hammer or a mislaid eraser; they do not make you feel they are conferring a great benefit on you when they live with you, and they don't make a scandal when they leave. (...)"

 

Sure, every country on earth has individual people who behave like this, but no country has 100% of people thinking like this.

 

Indeed, my home country, the UK, from my recent experience I would say a very small proportion of people would fit in the "box"

 

Because, to fit this, the tolerance has to be displayed to 100% of people. It can't be selective. A good example for British people... migrants at Calais. Ask 100 British if they think the gates at Calais should be thrown open and the "migrants and asylum seekers" allowed in.

 

I reckon you would get less than 5% who would say yes. Personally, I would be one of them. We bomb their countries, destabalize their soverign nations and put the whole of the middle east into chaos... then complain when people want to escape the hell we have created.

 

Gentle?  Erm... ever been to a UK high street on a Friday night at chucking out time?

 

Yup, I often moan and gripe about bad manners here. Yangism annoys me on a personal superficial level. But deep down, I prefer not to throw stones in glass houses.

 

At this moment, my country is bombing other countries. They are killing people. A lot of them are innocent kids. You know, bombing people.. blowing them to bits with multi million buck missles.

 

I would say that puts my home country in a "box" further down your list.

 

PS.... Yes yes, I know Isis is bad and something needs to be done. I wonder if anyone has tried talking to them.

 

 

earthizen:

"Depends if you are basing it on actions of individuals, or on society as a whole."

 

None of us (except the insane, I suppose) would claim to know every single china mainlander (1.3+ billion!) personally so it is only reasonable to ask for a general impression on society as a whole.

 

As far as UK goes, hmmmm......many use the word eccentric to describe the society as a whole. I am willing to bet even many a Brits would agree, and are proud of that. Well, you tell me your views, haha.

 

Friday night fevers, those aren't that uncommon, to be fair. Japanese have karaoke after work, karaoke was invented as a form of release of trapped energies (by the Japanese). I am even willing to keep one eye closed on the soccer fans. :)  I can see a similiarity here, each group (as a whole) employs their own way to release trapped energies, none vent it on innocent groups blindly. I think we can add this as another trait describing those with human decency. 

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse

ScotsAlan:

Yup Earthizen.  We can't know everyone and you wanted a general impression.

 

Here is my general impression.

 

If you ask anyone in China' " Should there be more hospitals and should they be free?".  I would say 99% would say yes.

 

If you ask anyone in China " Should there be a universal contributary social secuirity system ?".. I would say 90% would say yes.

 

How would Americans answer those questions?  Well, we will find out next year.  I predict the Republicans will win, 52% to 48%.

 

If that is the case, then that means that over 50% of Americans would say no to the above two questions.

 

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse

earthizen:

Interesting questions, free hospitality for everyone and universal contributory heath system. You can't really have one without the other, can you? The issue here is, is your health your  responsibility or everyone's responsibility? It actually is a good question, your answer shows your attitude toward responsibility.

 

To go with your train of thoughts, if you ask mainlanders, "why are those among you, on one hand crave western products, but on the other hand throw harrroosss, mocking looks, forever arguing even when you're obviously wrong, .... with westerners, and non-mainlanders?"  What do you think 99% their answers would be, i.e. if they are honest, for once? 

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse

ScotsAlan:

From my experience of Cantonese folk, they love to interact and argue. Sometimes, when my family are together it seems as if they are having a blazing row, but actually they are laughing as they fight.  I think this comes from Buddhism.

 

As for material possessions... well, China is far from being the worst on that score.  Lot's of factors influence that.  Don't forget that the Chinese Government has been promoting consumerism for the last decade. They published a plan back in 2005 or so saying they wanted to develop the Chinese consumer market so they did not have to depend so much on exports to keep the factories going.

 

Some people bought into the consumerist society, others did not. I would say the percentage of Chinese who did buy into it is a lot lower than the west, going by % of population.

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse

Shining_brow:

I think you've missed an obvious point Scots..

 

"Ask people if they think there should be more hospitals and health care should be free?" - 99% would say "YES"!

 

Ask them to actually pay all the taxes they are due to pay (or maybe increase taxes) to pay for it... 99% would say "NO!".

 

I presume most of us are living in a rented apartment or house - how many of the landlords do you think are paying the appropriate amount of tax on that income??

 

And it's not just the rich who are trying to dodge taxes (often illegally by just not declaring income).

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse

earthizen:

Shinning nailed it, Scots. Show them solid figures and ask them if they are willing to pay that amount, I would love to see how many hands are still up in the air.

 

The other reason Cantonese in Guangzhou (notice, not Shenzhen which is filled to the brim by mandarin speakers from other provinces, Hubei, Hunan, Guangxi, ...you name it) is because of its proximity to Hong Kong, also sharing the same dialect. For decades they have been watching HK television (in secret, by sticking up attenna skyhigh) and getting worldwide news, reading HK (smuggled in by their relatives in HK) newspaper, magazine, books.....etc. Their 'arguement' is more of a discussion, not the egotistical, warmongering "I must win" kind.  Another reason is that Guangzhou is the trading hub for china, as early as the 1970s, Guangzhou people were working in trade fairs (twice a year since late 1970s), meeting / receiving westerners in flocks, when Shanghai-nese were still looking for enough noodles to feed themselves. Of the entire china, this group is the least cloistered group.

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse

ScotsAlan:

I'm not sure if I have missed the point. earthizen was asking for a generalized answer. And I gave what is, I think, a general answer. You can't ask me now for evidence for me to back up my feeling.

 

China is unknown when it comes to paying a contribution for social and health care.  Yes, a massive percentage of Chinese do all they can to avoid paying tax, but ask them if they would pay into a system that would give them free health care at reasonable cost ( similar to UK at 7.5% ?) and I reckon most would go for it.

 

Now, ask if they would contribute to a system that would benefit others?.... probably not.  Yup. There would be massive issues and they would need to build a lot os hospitals... because everyone would want their moneys worth from their contributions.

 

Americans on the other hand. Pretty much 50/50 split. Straight down party lines.

 

That's why I suggest their is a difference. Offer a compulsery pay in health scheme to a group of Americans, and 1 in 2 of them will accuse you of trying to control their life and taking away their freedom.

 

Offer it to an average Chinese person, and they would pay in and use the service to the max. They would not mention their right of freedom of choice being taken away.

 

See my point?  Massive generalisation.. but hey.... that's what you asked for wink

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse

Shining_brow:

:p Scots, I suggest you missed AN obvious point... not "the point". Just one...

 

I agree - they'd probably pay (if it was well regulated and watched), and then abuse it to pieces!!!

 

I'm going to disagree with you about Amerka... I don't think the entire 300+ million people are so easily split 50/50. The media portrays things like that, but I think the people in general are more diverse than that. Also, there's a large chunk of political propaganda involved. If the people, as a whole, were showed the pros and cons, I think the majority of those 300+million would say it's a good idea - same as in most other western civilised countries!!! Certainly if you asked them - would you prefer your tax money to go into military or public health - I think the majority would vote for the health.

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse

ScotsAlan:

I agree shing brow. It would be abused in China. I also agree about America and the system there. It is the most vocal who are most often heard.

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse

ambivalentmace:

as a conservative american, not a republican, the premise that government is good and looks out for the interest of its citizens instead of special interests (left are right) is flawed and wrong, therefore i dont want the government running my health care, hell i dont think they should even run the schools.

now if the budget for every expense for education, medical care is totally transparent and availabe online for anyone to scrutinize and provide oversight of the program, i will reluctantly change my vote, but that will never happen. the idea that government is a god that does not have to be watched every second is naive. when i see universities all moved to one area of the city, i dont see this as safety, this is way to use less soldiers to quell protests by having students all in one place, when the foreigner has to live in a gated security guard building, this is way of knowing where he is and what he is doing, this is the hamster in the cage being watched, satellites, cameras, wiretaps, phone monitoring, all governments have made their citizens hamsters in the cage of earth, to assume they all have benevolent intentions and not be worried is as foolish as a jew getting a shower at a concentration camp.

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse
Report Abuse
8 years 36 weeks ago
 
Posts: 1198

Shifu

2
0
You must be a registered user to vote!
You must be a registered user to vote!
2

It sounds like the OP wants to simplify the world so it is easier for them to comprehend. People are different. Societies are complex. This question just adds to the usual circle-jerk of anti-Chinese questions that abound on this site. How many times can you rephrase the same question? Thousands of times it seems. I get it - you think Chinese people are rude and inferior and the West is neato. Great. 

earthizen:

Now that is over​simplification, lol. Mainlanders is but a subset of the chinese race, at best. Notice even within mainlanders as a subgroup, I am asking for percentages, which is far more specific than saying 'generally mainlanders are X, Y, Z..." although that would also be a valid observation, especially if you have been in china for half a decade or more.

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse
Report Abuse
8 years 36 weeks ago
 
Posts: 2855

Emperor

8
8
You must be a registered user to vote!
You must be a registered user to vote!
0

Using those standards...  I think that there is a GLOBAL rate of A.

Humans, as a species, are TERRIBLE.

earthizen:

Mannnnnn, you nailed it. Too fast, LOL. 

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse
Report Abuse
8 years 36 weeks ago
 
Posts: 3269

Emperor

3
3
You must be a registered user to vote!
You must be a registered user to vote!
0

i believe a very small percentage of psychopaths dominate the scenery. when it comes to lies and swindles, the majority is merely reacting to others who break down trust in society. it only takes a few to create the domino effect.
just like in the streets: when a bunch of people stare at you and a few shout "laowai", it's easy to forget the hundreds who passed by minding their own business, and write off everybody as rude and ignorant.
every human population has sociopaths present, but what i believe makes China less livable, is that they operate with impunity here. they face no negative consequences, because the government is corrupt and the people are afraid to speak up about anything.

Shining_brow:

Is there some suggestion here that members of the government are psycho- or socio-paths?

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse

coineineagh:

A sociologist could explain it better. What the Red Guards did allowed homocidal sociopaths to amass wealth, immune to retaliation. And many of them huddled together in major cities, because they were no longer safe in their hometowns after what they did. The CCP is the inheritor of this, and sets the tone for how people in society interact. It's not all their fault, as there was rigid-thinking, atrocious behaviour here long before they arrived, but they definitely made it worse.

8 years 36 weeks ago
Report Abuse
Report Abuse
8 years 36 weeks ago
 
Posts: 2587

Emperor

1
1
You must be a registered user to vote!
You must be a registered user to vote!
2

Did you have a BCD?  Because, as nzteacher80 also wrote, this post is just a really complicated way of saying, "mainland Chinese people suck". We all have bad days, so I'm not hatin' on you, but this was very creative. 

nzteacher80:

Were the nasty Chinese mean mean to you earthizen? Go and bitch about it on the net. That will teach them. Those nasty Chinese men.

8 years 35 weeks ago
Report Abuse
Report Abuse
8 years 36 weeks ago
 
Know the answer ?
Please or register to post answer.

Report Abuse

Security Code: * Enter the text diplayed in the box below
Image CAPTCHA
Enter the characters shown in the image.
  • Allowed HTML tags: <a> <em> <strong> <cite> <code> <ul> <ol> <li> <dl> <dt> <dd> <img> <br> <p> <u>
  • Web page addresses and e-mail addresses turn into links automatically.
  • Lines and paragraphs break automatically.
  • Textual smileys will be replaced with graphical ones.

More information about formatting options

Forward Question

Answer of the DayMORE >>
A:  "... through ..."?  Only "through" comes to mind is "S
A: "... through ..."?  Only "through" comes to mind is "Shenzhen agent can connect you with an employer, who's authorized to hire waigouren ... and can sponsor Z visa." It's not like every 10th person you meet in Shenzhen's hood can sponsor work visa ...  The only way to change from student to labourer visa is just a regular way by: 1. Finding an employer, who'll apply for an Invitation letter; 2. Exit China and apply for Z visa in your home country's Chinese embassy; 3. Enter China in 30-days after Z visa was stamped into your travelling instrument ...As I am aware, you won't be able to switch to Working permit by remaining in China....,so make ready for a return to your home .... -- icnif77